TETHERED PAYLOAD SYSTEM AND METHOD

摘要

A vehicle, especially a maritime vessel, is provided with an autogyro drawn by a tether. The tether contains mechanical strengthening components that enable it to securely retain the autogyro to the vehicle. The tether also contains two electrical conductors carrying different phases of AC power to the autogyro, and four optical fibers carrying optical data signals to and from the autogyro electronic payloads and avionics control circuitry. Signal converters at ends of the tether convert a wide range of electrical or wireless signals to optical data signals for transmission along the tether, and then back into the original electrical signal format for use by the autogyro or vehicle electronics.